How can schools and students deal with mental issues and gun violence?

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Coming in the wake of recent mass shootings at schools such as Sandy Hook and Virginia Tech, schools are now faced with the challenge of protecting their students while at the same time, creating a free flowing learning environment.

Over the past few years, schools have dealt with the fear and danger of school shootings, emphasizing strict policy, security, and discipline as a result.

However, even with the strict emphasis of policies, enforcement, and discipline, there are still schools who fail to see how real and dangerous the scenario of school shootings are. Even with that, the most important thing that schools and students do not see is the mental issues to which many school shooters suffer from before they have done those incidents.

There are students who say that they don’t have much of an impact on preventing school shootings from happening, and in some cases they are right. However, students must realize that our impact is critical to preventing a shooting from happening and helping those with mental issues.

As students, the best thing that we can do in order to prevent shootings from happening is to not be afraid to provide help to those who need it. One call or text can make a difference. Helping those who seem to be suffering from mental problems can be huge for preventing those issues from getting worse and leading to dangerous situations such as school shootings or suicide. If we were to say something, we could be able to solve many issues that lead to gun violence in schools. Our impact is bigger than we think.

Another thing students can do is to be more aware of their surroundings. If you see someone or something suspicious, do not be afraid to say something to an adult. Speaking out about suspicious activity could save you and others from being involved in dangerous situations such as a school shooting. The website www.sandyhookpromise.com featured an ad that showed the impact of a kid not helping out and reporting the behavior of one of his close friends, who suffered from mental health issues. As a result, that student not only committed suicide, but also shot up his own school. It is time for students to protect not only themselves, but the well-being of those around them by speaking up on suspicious behavior and helping those who need it.

Lastly, there are some schools and students who view gun violence as something which is non-important and should not be taken seriously.

Well, here is the truth. Gun violence is no joke. When it is your school, your student, or your child that could have their lives taken away at any moment by the shot of a bullet, it is not something to fool around with. When it is your child or student that could be suffering from mental issues that could lead to dangerous activity later on, it is up to us to not see it as a joke or excuse, but to take care of them and listen. We must not be afraid to help those who suffer from mental health issues, instead of throwing a blind eye to their problems.

Students and schools can solve the issues of gun violence on school grounds and the issues of mental health problems in students who commit those problems. They must be more aware and report suspicious behavior, help out those suffering from mental health issues, and take on the subject of gun violence seriously.